Gazettal of subsidiary legislation under risk-based capital regime for insurance industry
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(i) Insurance (Public Disclosure) Rules;
(ii) Insurance (Valuation and Capital) (Amendment) Rules 2026; and
(iii) Insurance (Maintenance of Assets in Hong Kong) (Amendment) Rules 2026.
The Insurance (Public Disclosure) Rules prescribe detailed requirements for insurers (except those under transitional arrangements, marine insurers, captive insurers and special purpose insurers) to disclose to the public their audited financial statements and a disclosure statement covering key information such as corporate governance, financial position, investments, insurance liabilities, financial performance, pricing adequacy for general business (if applicable), capital adequacy level and risk management. The disclosure requirements will apply to financial years commencing on or after January 1, 2025, with disclosures to be made on the insurer's or its group company's website and archived for public inspection.
The Insurance (Valuation and Capital) (Amendment) Rules 2026 make amendments to Insurance (Valuation and Capital) Rules (Cap. 41R) arising from the IA's review of the RBC regime. These include offering preferential capital treatment for eligible infrastructure investments located on the Chinese Mainland or in Hong Kong (HK) (or issued/listed in Hong Kong), with additional incentives for Hong Kong dollar infrastructure bonds issued by the Government. The amendments also include making technical refinements to reduce risk capital amounts for natural catastrophe, man-made non-systemic catastrophe risks and reserve risk; providing relief to offshore reinsurance business for HK insurer or designated insurer being a member of a non-HK insurance group; allowing a matching adjustment to be applied for indexed universal life business; updating the capital treatment for crypto assets and specified stablecoins; introducing refinements to the countercyclical adjustment; and making miscellaneous amendments.
The Insurance (Maintenance of Assets in Hong Kong) (Amendment) Rules 2026 will make consequential amendments to the Insurance (Maintenance of Assets in Hong Kong) Rules (Cap. 41T).
A spokesman for the Financial Services and the Treasury Bureau said, "Transparency and market discipline will be further strengthened through the implementation of Pillar 3 public disclosure requirements. At the same time, enhancements to the RBC regime will better support insurers' long-term capital deployment, particularly in infrastructure projects that align with Hong Kong's economic development needs. These measures will improve insurers' capital efficiency, suitably reduce their compliance burdens, and further consolidate Hong Kong's position as an international risk management centre, while maintaining robust prudential safeguards for policyholders."
The rules relating to the disclosure of information to the public will commence upon publication in the Gazette, while the amendments relating to the review of the RBC regime will commence on December 31 this year.
The three pieces of subsidiary legislation will be tabled at the Legislative Council for negative vetting on May 27, 2026.
Ends/Friday, May 22, 2026
Issued at HKT 12:00
Issued at HKT 12:00
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